One of the fastest-selling wines in the United States over the last two decades has been cabernet sauvignon. But as climate change impacts the vineyards, that may well have to change.
Cabernet will not decline, of course. Its impact in the marketplace is simply too significant. However, what will be happening, probably slowly in the next decade, will be an increase in the appearance of a family grape called cabernet franc, which actually is one of the genetic parents of cabernet sauvignon.
Cabernet franc is a truly noble variety that produces exceptional red wines in France’s Loire Valley and has been used as a prime blending grape in Bordeaux, notably as an important ingredient in the wines from the right bank.
As temperatures increase in most vineyards worldwide, cabernet sauvignon begins to be a larger, more opulent wine with alcohols rising above 15 percent for many wines. It is not easy for grape growers to get the right flavors along with lower alcohol levels.
There are, of course, techniques for removing some of the alcohol in all wines, but even that tactic has its drawbacks. One of them is that cabernet sauvignon begins to smell more like port than a dry wine, even if the alcohol has been reduced.
Cabernet franc may be the answer. First of all, it tends to produce red wines that have more of the family characteristics that seem to be overly sensitive to higher temperatures in cabernet sauvignon.
Using cabernet franc as an addition to cabernet sauvignon helps to add character to Bordeaux-style blends as well as to cabernet sauvignon. In fact, it makes the latter wine a bit more interesting in most cases.
On its own, cabernet franc is a fascinating variety that seems to appreciate the Loire Valley’s soils and continental climates. In the Loire’s subregions of Bourgueil, Chinon, and Saumur-Champigny, cabernet franc makes nicely structured red wines that typically are not aged in barrel for flavor.
These wines typically produce flavors that are ideal from a Bordeaux sensibility and are best with food since they rarely have higher alcohols that produce succulence.
Cab franc also is popular in several northern hemisphere areas, including Washington state, Michigan, New York (Finger Fakes and Long Island), and even Virginia.
California makes cabernet franc from various regions of the state, including the Napa Valley, but with California’s persistent sunlight and warmth, the variety reaches sugar levels that allow for broader, soft wines. The variety seems to do best in slightly cooler regions, but if the region is too cool, the flavor profile can become a little too “green” and herbaceous.
The California versions that always seem to me to be somewhat atypical are those that have alcohol levels well above 14.5 percent. I prefer cabernet franc to be structured best for food when it has about 13.5 percent alcohol, but these are increasingly difficult to discover.
Savvy wine consumers should be on the lookout for cabernet franc. It can be more engaging than cabernet sauvignon.
